Pros & Cons of Driving Your Own Moving Truck

The biggest pro of driving your own moving truck is obviously the money you save.

Moving comes with many decision and an important one involves the moving truck. You can hire professional movers who not only do all the heavy lifting, but also drive a massive truck from your current residence to your new one, with ease. Alternately, you can opt to save some dough and do a total DIY move, including driving your own moving truck. Before you decide to take on this job, remember driving a large motor vehicle isn't nearly the same as driving the family car. Plus, large trucks have more rules to follow than you may be aware of, but you can still be held accountable just the same. Hopefully, the truck rental personnel gave you a crash course on what you need to know, but even with these instructions, doing the deed is often harder than you realize and the cons may significantly outweigh the pros.

Pro: Saving Money

The biggest pro of driving your own moving truck is obviously the money you save. Although it's cheaper to rent your own truck, than it is to hire a professional mover, it may not be as cheap as you think. Most rental companies not only charge you a flat daily rate, they also charge you a per mile fee. Plus, you have to refill the gas tank and large trucks aren't exactly fuel efficient. Then, you should opt to buy insurance, especially if it's your first attempt at driving a big truck, because you're not covered under most standard car insurance policy.

Con: Handling the Rig

You're probably telling yourself it can't be that hard to drive a large truck, but everything is trickier than you can imagine. Turning, backing, stopping and just remembering how big you are, will be some of the challenges you face. Large trucks need a lot more space than you realize, so don't be surprised when you swipe a few curbs along the way, or maybe even an adjacent vehicle. You also have to make much wider turns, especially turning to the right.

If you think turning is bad, wait until you have to back up. For one, you won't have the luxury of looking out the back window. Instead, you have to solely rely on your side view mirrors and you'll have lots of blind spots. Whenever possible, avoid parking in a way that requires backing up or ask someone to spot you during any backing maneuver. Stopping is also more difficult, because you'll need much more time than you're used to. The momentum from all the extra weight you're pulling behind you causes you lose stopping power, so never tailgate and leave at least five car lengths between you and the car in front.

Finally, it's vital you remember how big you are at times, but especially when you're approaching anything with a low clearance. Height clearance isn't something you'd normally pay attention to, but you'd better when you need a minimum of 14 feet of overhead clearance to safely pass beneath anything. This doesn't just include bridges, tunnels and overpasses, but also overhead canopies at drive-thru restaurants, gas station, parking garages and banks, that may or may not be clearly marked. Worse still are low-hanging wires or trees that require you to guess the clearance.

Con: Learning the Rules of the Road

Besides learning to drive a large moving truck, you also have to obey the rules of the road, which is difficult, if you don't know them. One of the most important rules you need to learn involves weigh stations. It's not always just 18-wheelers that have to stop and get weighed; some states also require rental trucks to stop. Weigh stations are usually operated by either the state's Department of Transportation or Highway Patrol They're basically highway checkpoints where trucks are literally weighed to see whether they're below the state's limit. It's not always clear whether a rental truck must stop, but it typically depends on your weight and specific laws within that state. For interstate moves, once you map your route, research weigh station requirement in each state you pass through. Failing to stop at a weigh station can result in a big fine, so if you're ever in doubt, go ahead and stop. The attendant will simply wave you through, if you aren't required to be there.

Final Thought

Do you know what size truck you need? The larger the truck, the more difficult it will be to maneuver, especially braking and turning. On the other hand, if you have a really large house crammed to the gills, even the largest truck might not be big enough. The largest moving truck you can rent is 26 feet, whereas some professional moving companies offer 52' foot trailers.